You get a name for yourself… just by going to Mass.
And before you know it people are referring to you by that awful definition ‘religious’.
Then you’ve been approached to be a reader at your church.
And to give out the host.
It all culminates in being bought a holy water fount for Christmas.
Oh, well, She had waited 25 years to get her own back.
After I’d bought her a non-stick frying pan, bacon, sausages, eggs and black pudding for our first Christmas.
This holy water fount is from Lough Derg, St Patrick’s sanctuary.
In my Dear Old Mum’s homestead of Co. Donegal in Ireland…. https://www.loughderg.org.
So what of the history of the bénitier?
Well, it’s a fancier and Frenchier way to describe a holy water font.
So you’ll not be surprised to know that it’s… found all over Gaul-land http://www.atout-france.fr in very ostentatious style.
It is often adorned with, say, Our Lady.
In olden days too rosary beads were often draped around the fonts.
Although in Marian sites Fatima https://www.fatima.pt/en and https://www.visitportugal.com/en/content/the-best-of-portugal?gclsrc=aw.ds&ds_rl=1258950&ds_rl=1252939&gclid=CjwKCAiA9JbwBRAAEiwAnWa4Q0nu0ByiGL2UMA94MnpCYcRAgaCRJQGmKM10FZv5yTiIEiAU8YjfzRoCym8QAvD_BwE, Lourdes https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/Medjugorje https://medjugorjelive.org you would do well to prise them out of the hands of the pilgrims.
You see I have seen it too first hand.
Stoups, of course, are most likely to be found in churches.
But did you know that they can sometimes be found above the bed? Passion killer, n’est ce pas?I make a habit of seeking out places of worship wherever I go.
They have the best art in Rome http://www.rome.netand sometimes also the best craic… Give us this Day – Sunday School, Tobago https://www.visittobago.gov.tt
But while I like to pray I love to play.
And no saint me. I have been known to fill bottles.Vatican rules
With holy water from St Paul’s Basilica at the end of my Via Francigena pilgrimage… https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/small-roads-lead-to-rome/
And in St James’s Cathedral in Santiago de Compostella http://www.caminoways.com and https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/camino-a-pilgrims-prayer/ after walking 100km from Sarria on the Camino.
Now, in the interests of full disclosure, I’ve also taken holy water from.
Water, water everywhere
A font by the River Jordan… https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/petra-jordan-jesus-and-the-sands-of-time/ and http://www.visitjordan.com.
A Greek Orthodox church on Mt Hybanthus… http://www.athensattica.com and Give us this Day – The Iconic Greek Orthodox
The Frauenkirche in Dresden http://www.dresden.de and Dresden’s renaissance under the eye of Martin Luther.
The cathedral in La Laguna in Tenerife… http://www.visitingtenerife.com and A walk through the ages… Tenerife
And these are just the sample charges.
I’d better get some prayers in then… maybe Our Lady will intercede on my behalf!